This report, from Stratview Research, studies the aircraft window frame market over the trend period of 2012 to 2017 and forecast period of 2018 to 2023 in terms of both value and units. The report provides detailed insights into the market dynamics to enable informed business decision making and growth strategy formulation based on the opportunities present in the market.

The Global Aircraft Window Frame Market: Highlights

The global aircraft window frame market is projected to grow at a healthy rate over the next five years to reach US$ 133.3 million in 2023. Increasing commercial and regional aircraft deliveries to support rising air passenger and freight traffic; increasing production rates of the next-generation aircraft programs, such as B787 and A350XWB; growing trend of larger windows; and high focus on the development of lightweight frames to achieve higher fuel efficiency and carbon emission reduction are the key drivers of the aircraft window frame market.

Frames are used in passenger cabin windows and cockpit windshields to provide rigidity to the windows. The metal window frame is the industry standard and is used in most of the aircraft frames. High demand for fuel-efficient aircraft led to the development of composites rich aircraft. Almost every component has undergone several changes in terms of design, material, etc. Window frames are also not untouched by such dynamics. Both the major commercial aircraft OEMs, Boeing and Airbus, have worked with material suppliers and parts fabricators and developed composite window frames for their next-generation aircraft, B787, and A350XWB. Composite window frames offer superior damage tolerance and have almost 50% lower weight compared to the traditional aluminum frames.

Organic growth of the aerospace industry is the prime driver of the window frame market. Boeing anticipated that there would be total deliveries of 41,030 commercial aircraft worth US$ 6.1 trillion in the global marketplace during 2017-2036. Asia-Pacific and North America would be the biggest demand generators with a combined share of 60.2% of the total commercial aircraft deliveries during 2017-2036. An expected healthy CAGR of 4.7% in air passenger traffic during 2017-2036 will chiefly drive the demand for commercial aircraft. This factor will create a sustainable demand for window frames globally in the foreseeable future.

In addition to that, Boeing and Airbus had a combined total order backlog of 13,129 commercial aircraft by the end of 2017. These huge pile of order backlogs of commercial aircraft is likely to show ample opportunity for aircraft window frames in the future. Boeing and Airbus have strategically raised the production rates of their key commercial aircraft programs in order to deliver aircraft to their widespread clients at a shorter period of time. Also, they have been introducing fuel-efficient variants of their best-selling aircraft programs with the purpose to address the biggest requirement of the airline industry, which is the fuel-efficient aircraft.

The global aircraft window frame market is segmented based on the aircraft type as Narrow-Body Aircraft, Wide-Body Aircraft, Very Large Aircraft, Regional Aircraft, and General Aviation. Narrow- and wide-body aircraft are likely to remain the growth engines of the market during the forecast period, propelled by increasing production rates of key programs, such as B737, A320 family, B787, and A350XWB; market entry of new players, such as COMAC and Irkut; introduction of fuel-efficient variants of existing best-selling aircraft programs, such as B737 max, A320neo, and B777x.

Based on the material type, the market is bifurcated into Metal Window Frame and Composite Window Frame. The metal window frame is likely to remain the more dominant material type in the market over the next five years. Metal window frames have an excellent track record with the availability of good repair technology across regions and the industry personnel having excellent knowledge of the materials. Low cost is another key countable factor of metal windows in an aircraft. However, the composite window frame is expected to grow with higher growth during the forecast period as composite window frame brings considerable weight savings as compared to the conventional metal window frames. Also, composite window frames are more durable and offer high strength-to-weight ratio than the metal window frames. It is expected that major airframers will opt composite window frame for their upcoming fuel-efficient aircraft.

Based on the product type, cabin window frame is likely to remain the dominant segment of the aircraft window frame market over the next five years. In recent years, the major aircraft manufacturers are squeezing more number of seats in an aircraft in order to generate additional revenue. For instance; Boeing has added two more rows (12 seats) in 737 Max than the B737-700. Also, Boeing announced in 2017 to reconfigure its fleet of Boeing 737-800 Next Generation (NG) aircraft by increasing seating capacity from 177 to 186 seats. This further aids the demand for cabin window frame in the industry.

Based on regions, North America is expected to remain the most dominant region in the aerospace window frame market. The region is the manufacturing hub of the aerospace industry with the presence of the several small- to large-sized aircraft manufacturers, tier players, distributors, and raw material suppliers. Asia-Pacific is likely to depict the highest growth during the same period, driven by China, and Japan. Both countries would remain the growth engines of the region’s market for aircraft window frames over the next five years.

Major window frame manufacturers are GKN Aerospace, LMI Aerospace, The Nordam Group, Inc., Otto Fuchs KG, ACE Advanced Composite Engineering GmbH, PPG Industries Inc., and SIFCO Industries Inc. New product development, collaboration with OEMs, and development of long-term contracts are the key strategies adopted by the major players to gain a competitive edge in the market.

Research Methodology

This report offers high-quality insights and is the outcome of detailed research methodology comprising extensive secondary research, rigorous primary interviews with industry stakeholders and validation and triangulation with Stratview Research’s internal database and statistical tools. More than 700 authenticated secondary sources, such as company annual reports, fact book, press release, journals, investor presentation, white papers, patents, and articles have been leveraged to gather the data. We conducted more than 10 detailed primary interviews with the market players across the value chain in all four regions and industry experts to obtain both qualitative and quantitative insights.

Report Features

This report provides market intelligence in the most comprehensive way. The report structure has been kept such that it offers maximum business value. It provides critical insights into the market dynamics and will enable strategic decision making for the existing market players as well as those willing to enter the market. Following are the key features of the report: